The 86 and BRZ sport coupes may have been the first products of a Toyota-Subaru joint venture, but there is more to come. That’s clear as Toyota has unveiled the bZ4X battery-electric concept car.
“Jointly developed with Subaru, the Toyota bZ4X SUV Concept is built on the new e-TNGA BEV-dedicated platform,” Toyota said. “The concept conveys Toyota’s legendary quality, durability and long-term reliability (QDR) in combination with Subaru’s AWD capabilities to achieve a driving experience that is both comfortable and engaging.”
As part of the concept car’s unveiling, Toyota announced that its “electrified product portfolio” will expand to around 70 models globally by 2025, including 15 new battery-electric vehicles, seven of them bZ vehicles.
Toyota said it also will add electrification — hybrids and battery-electrics — to its pickup truck models “in the near future.”
The automaker noted that electrified vehicles already account for more than 40 percent of all of the alternative-powertrain vehicles sold in the US.
“The Toyota bZ4X concept points to yet another option in our already robust electrified portfolio” Bob Carter, executive vice president of sales for Toyota Motor North America, is quoted in the company’s announcement.
“At Toyota, we are a human-centered company – the customer is our CEO and will ultimately decide which technologies will carry us toward a carbon neutral future. With investments and product offerings across the spectrum of electrification, we intend to be there with products and technologies that meet the diverse needs of customers around the world.”
Although labeled as a concept vehicle, Toyota said the bZ4X SUV will be built in Japan and China with sales beginning in 2022.
“U.S. product details will be shared at a later date,” it added.
Gosh, I think it’s 2 Bz even 4 my X